


Snapshots and mission reports

by cantorahagedoorn



Series: Not black and white [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, Justice League & Justice League Unlimited (Cartoons), Justice League - All Media Types
Genre: Bat Brothers, Bat Family, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Secluded Bat Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-20
Updated: 2018-04-14
Packaged: 2019-02-16 02:37:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13044741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cantorahagedoorn/pseuds/cantorahagedoorn
Summary: A collection of short stories set in the Not Black and White universe.So be on the lookout for Bats trolling, Batman being a dad, guest appearances from Flash his Rogues and more nonsense.





	1. Christmas 2017

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I'm not a native English speaker nor do I have a beta reader.  
> That being said. If you see any mistakes please point them out to me. That way I can correct them and maybe even learn something.  
> Enjoy.

_*Pling*_

_Video conference request from the Watchtower, authorisation Wonder Woman._

Bruce, in his full Batman costume, looked up at the message on his screen. It had been wonderful quiet in the cave so far and something told him this would be the end it.

He debated not answering the call for a second but then hit the accept button, you never knew.

The image that appeared was Wonder Woman with snow in her hair.

"Batman,"

"Wonder Woman,"

"How do you beat four birds in a snowball fight?" The Amazon asked with a serious expression.

 

_Earlier on the Watchtower_

Diana was standing in the middle of the main hall of the Watchtower, all around were Christmas decorations. Trees, mistletoe, tinsel, lights, Christmas ball, garlands, (fake) presents and snow.

Diana bent down to inspect the snow from a little bit closer and concluded that yes, it was real snow. Which was probably the reason someone had turned the temperature down.

While she was standing up she saw Superman coming from one of the doorways and waved him over. She enjoyed talking to the other hero and she knew how much he loved the holiday.

"It looks beautiful again this year," she commented to the man of steel.

Clark was happy to hear that, "Yeah, a lot of people helped. We might even have overdone it a bit."

"Its wonderful none the less," Diana decided "Who was responsible for the snow?" She then asked out of curiosity.

Clark frowned "You know... I don't have a clue. Whoever it was is dedicated to his or her cause, because it is very impressive."

He hardly finished talking when a snowball hit the back of his head.

 

_Now, Batcave_

"So that is where they went," Bruce replied, "Now I don't have to worry that I might accidentally wander into the crossfire."

Dianna did not look impressed with his answer

"Have you actually found them yet?" Bruce then said after a pause.

"We have heard them,"

"You will need to do better," Bruce replied "First order of business is to locate them. _All_ of them. And keep track of their location because they will move around a lot and try to lose you. Superman his x-ray vision should be helpful with that."

"Next order of business," Bruce continued, "Have you ever heard of divide and conquer?"

"Yes?" The amazon replied warily.

"Don't utilise that tactic, they _will_ use it against you. Instead, try and drive them together, this gives you a bigger chance of hitting at _least_ one of them."

"Lastly,” the dark knight continued sternly, “This will be a case of quantity over quality. All of them are experts on dodging thus you will be more likely to hit them by throwing a lot of snowballs than by throwing well-aimed snowballs."

The warrior princess looked thoughtful, Bruce was sure she was already working on a strategy.

"One last thing," Batman said, "Are you all participating?"

Diana understood what he asking without any further prompting.

"J'onn made himself incorporeal a while ago and is being our refugee. He is also keeping an eye on the monitors, we are not leaving Earth unprotected."

"Good," Bruce replied and then after a beat, "I will probably bring soup when I pick the Robins up for dinner."

Diana narrowed her eyes, "Will this be _your_ soup or this mysterious Agent A. his soup."

"Agent A."

"In that case, I want the recipe."

"Agent A his recipes are very well kept secrets," Bruce replied, "Even I don't have them."

Diana narrowed her eyes some more, "I still don't believe that."

Bruce just smiled "Have fun with your fight."

_Video conference ended_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _A whole lot later_  
>  All the participants of the big snowball battle had happily gathered around the dark knight. Everybody was provided with soup from the (really large) canister and enjoying the warm substance a great deal. Batman was keeping half an eye on his birds, who were significantly less snowy than the Leaguers, while he talked with J'onn about some recent updates. 
> 
> When everybody was finished the Bat-clan packed up and left.
> 
> "Still can't believe we _lost_!"  
>  "Just think of the humiliation we would have suffered if Batman hadn't given us any advice."  
> "I don't want to think about it..."


	2. Report: How to deal with wanabe sidekicks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On request of the JL Batman & Co sent their report on how to deal with people who want to 'help'  
> This is not the version the JL received, Batman edited it first.

Batman requested a report on the best way to deal with children who, inspired by Robin, want to help us vigilantes at night. To create a clear overview this report will be dived in two parts.

  1. Currently used (working) methods.
  2. Advised method.



1\. Currently used (working) methods.

There will be a selection of examples of methods that are currently being used by various members of our Bat-clan. This will be limited to methods that actually worked without having to call an (or several) other members and/or took several hours. The methods will be shown with transcriptions of the conversations.

 

Batman and 10 year old:

_Little 10 year old on the fire escape adjacent to the roof on which Batman is positioned._

10y: Mister Batman! I can help!

B: No.

10y: But I could…

B: No.

_Note: Batman has started glaring directly at the child at this point_

10y: But I…

B: No.

10y: But…

B: No.

10y: Should I go back to bed?

B: Yes.

B: Sleep well.

 

Red Hood and 19 year old:

_Tiny nineteen-year-old, with a getup, that was probably intended to be a costume, and a mask. This kid has found his way to the roof._

_Note from RH:_ Nightwing, the guy was taller than you are. Why are you calling him ‘tiny’

 _Note from N:_ Everybody under 21 is tiny, you should know that _little_ wing.

19y: Hey! Red Hood!

RH: What the hell are you wearing?

19y: Eh? A mask?

RH: No dude. Just no. Go back home.

19y: Why?

RH: Because you’re going to get yourself killed. That is why!

19y: I’m not some child! I’m _older_ than Robin.

RH: Robin is a little demon I don’t need to constancy keep an eye on. You, on the other hand, are going to do something momentous stupid and get hurt.

19y: No I won’t.

RH: Let me rephrase it. Either you get back inside or I’m going to shoot you in your leg.

19y: You wouldn’t!

RH: Ultimately less of a hassle and less of a waste of my time. So what will it be?

_Note: RH had pulled one of his guns by this point_

19y: Eh… I’ll be… I’m going back… BYE!

 

Red Hood and 13 year old:

_Tiny thirteen year old had found out how to get to the roof of his flat. Red Hood passed by during patrol._

13y: Mr Hood, Mr Hood!

RH: Why are you out of bed?

13y: I want to help! Just like Robin!

RH: Don’t compare yourself with Robin. He’s a little brat and you can do better than that.

13y: …

13y: Does that mean I can help?

RH: Nope. The _easy_ guys I fight are about 2 times as tall as you are and 5 times as heavy. And do you even know how to throw a punch?

13y: Uhm… No?

RH: Come here.

_Red Hood teaches little thirteen year old how to throw a decent punch._

RH: Well done.

13y: Does that mean I can help now?

RH: You think a punch like that is any good against a guy 5 times your weight? You should start with your own size. Bullies or something, and leave the big stuff to the big guys.

13y: You sure…

RH: Very sure. Now back to bed before your mom starts to worry.

 

Red Robin and 15 year old:

_Let the record show that no one actually knows how long Red has been awake and how much coffee he had consumed at this point. Anyway, some 15 year old had snuck out to ‘help’._

15y: Red Robin! Red Robin!

RR: What?! Oh… Uhm… Hi?

RR: Why are you out of bed?

15y: I want to do what you do! I want to help.

RR: Oh… Help would be nice.

15y: So could I…

RR: Now we have patrol and it is important that we check all of Penguins old hideouts. Because we have intel that suggests that he is hiding out in one. We also need more intel on Riddler and the Mat Hatter because they're out there and we shouldn’t give them the time to get themselves together. After that, we have to log everything and compare notes. I need to adjust the parameters of the search programs for Riddler, Penguin, Mat Hatter and Killer Crock. Both based on information gathered tonight and what we know from chatter. I also have to check the algorithms for Joker and Poison Ivy, because I think there might be a glitz. Then I have to take a look at old hats from Mat Hatter because we need a better method nullifying the hypnosis. And I need to write a program that can determine likely targets for Riddler. Then I also need to work on some of my equipment, because I know I can increase the effectiveness of a couple of tools and I think there is something wrong with my bo staff. Probably due to that last fight I had with Killer Crock now that I think about it. Then I also need to remember to train some extra, I have been slacking on actual training with weights. Also, I have some sparring with Red Hood and need to prepare tactics for that. And in between all that I have _a lot_ of reports to write.

15y: …

RR: …

RH:… Replacement… What? Just what?

RR: What are you doing here?

RH: Your com is transmitting.

RR: Really?

RH: Really. And you should go to bed. Like right now.

RH to 15y: You should go back to bed too. I have to get this mess home.

_Red Robin managed to sleep for two days straight after this particular incident. Also, there has been a to-do list added to the cave. In the hopes of getting a better overview of who is working on which tasks._

 

Robin and 16 year old.

_Sixteen-year-old had used the fire escape to climb to the roof of his apartment building. Robin path crossed over this particular roof._

16y: Oh my god! Oh my god! You’re Robin! This is so cool!

R: What are you doing on _the roof?_

16y: I want to help! Like you do.

R: That sound like a _terrible_ idea.

16y: But you do it too.

R: I know over a hundred ways to kill a man whiteout leaving evidence. You, on the other hand, are going to fall off the roof. Then you will die or worse get hurt.

16y: Why is getting hurt worse than dying?

R: Because you will be loud and unreasonable and it will take me _forever_ to sort that out.

16y: …

16y: I think I’ll get back inside.

R: That sounds _excellent._

 

That was a selection of currently working methods. There are some good points (pointing out the dangers, encouraging them to stand up to bullies) and some less-good points (threatening with bodily harm).

 

2\. Advised method

This part will walk through the different argument that can be used to discourage young kids who want to 'help'. To make matters clear some examples will be included.

 

_Point out that this is a dangerous business and that they could get seriously hurt. Include the effect it can have on relatives._

We are fighting very dangerous and armed people, the possibility of you getting hurt is very real.

You will worry your parents/mother/father/sister/brother. And/or make them very sad when you get hurt/die.

 

_Make them aware that they are untrained for this kind of business._

Do you know how to throw a punch?

I regularly jump from roof to roof, do you have the stamina to do the same?

I have years of training in fighting/moving unnoticed/hacking/etc. That you simply don't have.

 

_Point out that you have better equipment_

I am wearing body armour, what is protecting you from the bullets?

I have a grappling hook to help me move around the city, and no you can not borrow mine.

 

_Inform them of ways they can contribute._

I think you're biting off more than you can chew. Why not start smaller, like standing up to bullies?

A small gesture can already a long way, stand up for somebody. In school for example.

You should try to start small. Do some volunteer work for example.

 

Overall it is advised to try and let your conversation have the following structure. No, you can not help because _fact 1_ , _fact 2_ and _fact 3_ , but you could help by _give example_.

 

 _Written by:_ Nightwing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Do you think it is a mistake or that they did it on purpose?"  
> "What is a mistake?" Hal asked his blond friend.  
> "Well.." Barry explained, "It looks like we only have half the report. It starts with '2. Advised method'."  
> "He? Your right. That is weird."  
> "I wonder what part one was..."


	3. Martial art lessons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have 1 new e-mail  
> Subject: Martial art lessons  
> To: Justice Leauge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New addition to snapshots!  
> Usual reel, I'm not actually English and if you see mistakes I will endeavour to correct them.  
> Special thanks to [Nobodystormcrow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nobodystormcrow/pseuds/Nobodystormcrow) for being the Beta for this instalment! It means a lot.

_1 new mail_

_Dear all,_

_It has been brought to our attention that it would be appreciated if there would be the possibility to train more in hand to hand combat and maybe train in some situational awareness. Hand to hand is a skill that can help with both offence and defence. We will go over different kinds of attacks and blocks and how to redirect attacks of your opponent. This will also be a good opportunity to exchange experience between one another and maybe do some matches._

_The lessons will take place in the Watchtower Sunday afternoon at 6, unless there is an emergency._

 

_Watchtower_

Clark arrived a little bit early at the gym in the Watchtower. At first, he almost completely ignored the message about martial art lessons, but it was the part about redirecting attacks that had caught his attention. During the day, he had heard a fair amount of others talk about the lessons as well. Almost all the founders were going, though not all for the same reasons. It sounded like Hal and Ollie mostly went to have a (friendly) match between each other.

A couple of minutes before the lesson was supposed to start Flash showed up. Clark waved him over to talk with his fellow hero.

“How did you manage to get here on time?” He asked his blond friend in a teasing tone.

“Made sure the beginning of the lesson matched with the end of my turn for monitor duty,” Flash replied with a grin. “Besides, I’m not that bad.”

“Yes, you are.”

Before Flash could argue more Clark continued “Do you know who is going to give the lesson? Diana maybe?”

Barry shook his head, “Wonder Woman and Black Canary have their monthly sparring session/ female fight group thingy. I walked in once, and those ladies are intimidating. Besides, I don’t think Diana is all that interested in leading something so male orientated,” Flash gestured to the people gathered around them. They were indeed mostly male.

Clark nodded to show his agreement, but before either of them could continue their conversation a voice rang out over the crowd.

“Good to see that there are so many people interested!”

Everybody looked over to the newcomers, who were apparently going to give the lesson. Superman was slightly surprised to see a beaming Nightwing and a bored looking Red Hood.

“ _You_ are going to provide the training?” Someone in the group asked, with disbelief clear in their voice.

“Yup,” Nightwing replied, still smiling, “I’m going to do hand to hand while Hood works on situational awareness.”

Red Hood gave a sloppy [two-fingered](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-finger_salute) salute and put down the case he had been carrying. It looked like the kind of case one would carry a sniper rifle in. But the man wasn’t planning on shooting them, _right?_

* * *

Most, if not all, the participants of the training were bone tired. Superman didn’t think he had ever seen Barry this still except as the result of long battles. After the stretches (did Nightwing even have a spine?) they had started on basic form and Nightwing had gone past everyone to give them exercises that would suit them.

Meanwhile, Red Hood was ‘training’ a large group in situational awareness. Which meant that he shot people with colourful paintballs. Clark had been right about the case, it did contain a sniper rifle but it had been modified to shoot paintballs instead of bullets. The Gothamite had chosen the high ground for the exercise. He was moving through the rafters, and the leaguers had to keep track of where he was in order not to get shot.

Judging by the number of colourful splotches all over the participating heroes, they still had a lot to learn.

“So, same time next time we will continue with the thing we did today” Nightwing called, “Take a shower, you’ll feel better.”

While most of the other Leaguers were leaving, Flash and Superman struck up a conversation with Nightwing and Red Hood, who was putting his rifle back into the case.

“That was a very thorough lesson,” Flash said, “If you don’t mind me asking, why are you two giving it? I remember you mentioning that Robin knew the most about hand to hand?”

Red Hood snorted but it was Nightwing who answered, “Baby Bat is really good in martial arts, but he isn’t that good at, or interested in teaching.”

“That is an understatement,” Red Hood commented, while he clicked the latches on his case shut.

“What about Batman?” Clark asked interested.

“Batman is probably the best of us at teaching,” Nightwing replied, “But he is also really busy and dislikes teaching large groups.”

“To be fair,”Red Hood put in, “That is probably because we are terrible when we train together and because he is a bit of a perfectionist.”

“We aren’t terrible when training together,” Nightwing protested.

Red Hood seemed to shoot his black haired companion a _look_ (it was hard to tell with the helmet).

“We are _not.”_

“Whatever you want to believe, Golden Boy. Besides, we have to get going.”

“We do,” Nightwing smiled at the two founders, “See you next time!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oliver: I don’t get it.  
> Hal: What don’t you get?  
> Oliver: Well… He clearly had a lot of different colours loaded. I mean I have both a red spot and a blue spot on my arm.  
> Oliver: So how did he manage to only hit you with yellow?  
> Hal: I haven’t got a flipping clue.


	4. Ghost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is a relatively slow day at the Watchtower.  
> Which is good news! But where does that persistent feeling of being watched come from?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to [Nobodystormcrow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nobodystormcrow/pseuds/Nobodystormcrow) for beta reading!  
> This is going to be the last one for a (long) while. Short stories don't really work for me....  
> I do have some (vague) ideas for another long story. But I make no promises.  
> Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy the story!

_Watchtower_

Hal looked at the dark-haired man with suspicion. Nightwing was sitting on a railing facing a 4-story drop, but the guy was perfectly relaxed and was even eating some kind of dried fruit. Technically he wasn’t supposed to be able to get on the Watchtower since none of the bats had officially joined the JL. Instead, there was a weird relationship between the JL and the Bats, but technicalities didn’t stop the Gothamites at all.

This was not the reason for Hal’s suspicion, however. His suspicion had everything to do with feeling watched and stared at, only to turn around and see no one. It was exactly what he could see one of the Bats do for shits and giggles.

Mind made up, the Green Lantern made his way toward Nightwing. Flying up to avoid the stairs, Hal landed next to the black and blue hero.

“What are you doing here?” So that sounded a bit angrier than he had intended.

Nightwing didn’t indicate that he noticed Hal’s hostility.

“I’m waiting for Flash,” The man held out the bag of dried fruit in his hands, “Do you want some?”

Hal looked at the offered bag but still decided to decline. “So, you’ve just been sitting here waiting for Flash?”

“Yup. I wouldn’t want to miss him by being somewhere else.”

“You do know he is a bit notorious for being late, right?”

“Oh yes,” Nightwing replied with a broad smile. “Still wanted to be here a bit early though. I like people watching and this is an excellent spot.”

“And you haven’t left this spot since you got here?” Hal asked, suspicion clear in his voice.

“Nope.”

“Well… I’m off again.”

“See you around!” Nightwing yelled at Hal’s retreating back.

 

RH:        Hey, N where are you? The others are hiding, I think they don’t want spar with me.

N:          That’s because you have a habit of turning yourself into an immovable object.

N:          And I’m on the Watchtower. I have that thing with Flash later, remember?

RH:        Yeah, yeah.

RH:        How’s the people watching going? Anybody asked you what you were up to yet?

N:          I’m getting a _lot_ of suspicious looks. But only Green Lantern really came over to talk.

N:          I think that BB is silently creeping them out.

RH:        BB would never get caught.

RH:        And _of course_ Green Lantern would go for a direct confrontation.

RH:        Did he try to subtly/passive-aggressively accuse you?

N:          Yup.

N:          And I never said they caught BB.

RH:        OH! Just staring at the back of someone’s head till they get paranoid and jump out of the way before they turn around? That’s always hilarious.

BB:        Yep.

RH:        As long as you’re having fun.

RH:        Back to my original problem. I still don’t have a sparring partner.

N:          You might be able to get R to join you if you train with weapons. Otherwise just yell you're making it sniper practice. RR said he should brush up on his sight lines.

RH:        I’ll see what I’ll do. Maybe I’ll just lie on the first one I find.

BB:        Have fun.

RH:        Yeah, yeah. Tell me more when you get back.

_A Little later_

Superman, just like Hal, had the feeling of being watched. It was not there constantly, but it still had the Man of Steel on edge. He had lost count of how many times he had suddenly looked over his shoulder only to see an empty hallway.

He noticed Nightwing sitting on the railing and decided to have a talk with the young man, just to get his mind off things for a bit.

“Hey Nightwing, how are you doing?” The Man of Steel asked the black and blue vigilante.

“Hi, Superman! I’m doing fine, thanks for asking,” Then the man extended his arm to offer Clark some dried fruit, “Want some?”

“Why not?” The sable-haired man said while he took some of the dried berries. “What are you doing here, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Waiting for Flash,”

“You’ve been here a while. When did you arrange to meet?”

“In about an hour and a half,”

Clark looked at the raven-haired man, wondering if he’d heard that right.

Nightwing’s smile grew a bit wicked, “I like people watching and waiting for Flash is an excellent excuse.”

Superman just sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. That explanation didn’t really surprise him.

“Are you the reason I have been feeling watched all day?” He eventually asked the younger man.

“Me personally? No,” Nightwing replied. Superman thought that was it but he continued, “It might’ve been Black Bat though… She also likes people watching.”

“Black Bat?”

“We gave you a rundown of the entire Bat-clan, remember?”

Superman really didn’t want to admit that, like most of the League, he couldn’t keep the collection vigilantes in the Bat-family straight. So he made a vague guess.

“That is one of the girls, right?” That sounded a bit more uncertain than he planned.

“Yup!” The black and blue hero replied with a smile, “Say hi to Supes, Black.”

Suddenly Black Bat was standing there in her charcoal costume. She waved a shy hello and then just disappeared again.

“We’re going to compare notes at the end of the day,” Nightwing told Clark with a big grin on his face.

“Ah…” Clark replied, “Well… I’ll be off again. Eh, have fun?”

Nightwing happily waved as the Man of Steel flew off again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Flash: Have you been waiting long?_   
>  _Nightwing: Don’t worry about it. We had fun._   
>  _Black Bat appears out of nowhere and gives Flash a short wave._   
>  _Flash: Who’re you texting?_   
>  _Nightwing: Red Robin is complaining that Red Hood is lying on him._   
>  _Flash: ???_   
>  _BB: Hood is heavy._   
>  _Flash: You know, never mind, let’s get going._


End file.
